Dr. Narendra Gupta

Dr. Narendra Gupta is a community health physician with more than 40 years of experience working with marginalised communities in Rajasthan. He is a founding member of Prayas, a nonprofit organisation based in Rajasthan, and has been one of the national organisers of Jan Swasthya Abhiyaan, a movement advocating for free healthcare and Right to Health. Dr. Gupta had a key role in designing the National Rural Health Mission framework on community engagement, defining the role of Panchayati Raj Institutions and the community action component. He was a member of the 12th Five Year Plan working group focused on drugs and food safety and played an important role in the launch of Nishulk Dava Yojana (free medicine scheme) in Rajasthan in 2011. He chaired a Ministry of Health and Family Welfare working group tasked with building convergence between Ayushman Bharat (PMJAY) and Health and Wellness Centres. In 2013, he filed a Public Interest Litigation in the Supreme Court of India and persuaded the MOHFW to obtain national estimates of hysterectomies through NFHS-4 and NFHS-5, which culminated in the drafting and release of national guidelines for prevention of unnecessary hysterectomies.